He was usually quiet, watching everything around him in that way he does, his arms crossed in front of him, keeping his mind and opinions to himself. Justin and I grew up next door to each other, totally inseparable since age five. We were so close, people thought we were brothers. We even looked like we were from the same family. I was taller by a few inches, but we both had brown eyes and sandy blond hair that we preferred to keep as long as the wrestling regulations would allow. We were easy-going for the most part, but Justin was harder to read, even for me, who knew him better than anyone. Right now, though, I knew he was running out of patience.
Justin was right about the auction not going anywhere right now, so I dragged my heels off the edge of the desk, snagging a picture frame with them. I lunged, but wasn’t quick enough to catch it before it crashed onto the hardwood floor.
“Crap,” I said, picking up the frame.
“Isn’t that seven years of bad luck?” Justin joked.
“That’s for a broken mirror,” I said. I flipped the framed picture over and ran my fingers over Dani’s image. She was the best-looking girl at Sandpoint High and, being a runner, she was in incredible shape. Thin, in a healthy-thin way. The sharp angles of her jaw made her look determined, but when she smiled, those angles always softened. Her eyes, an amazing shade of jade-green, looked out at me from behind the broken glass. I remembered she’d been laughing at something I’d said when I took this picture last summer. Yeah, she was something special.
I set the frame on the desk along with the other stuff that had fallen. Scooping a stray sock from the floor, I threw it towards the corner of the room, just missing the laundry basket, before rounding the bed to the weight set.
“You good?” Justin asked.
I widened my stance and held my hands directly under the bar, in case Justin needed help. “Yeah, I’m good.”
Justin pushed the bar up and off the brackets and eased it down to his chest to begin the last set.
I forced myself to focus on him. I had to, because one slip…
Power.
Something pushed at my brain, almost like a whisper that brushed under my skull. And it came from…
The sudden weight of the bar across my palms snapped my focus back to Justin. His arms were starting to wobble with fatigue under the weight of the bar.
“Come on, you wimp.” I grinned, now completely focused on him. “It’s not that heavy. I didn’t even put the extra plates on yet.”
That hit a nerve. Justin could never resist a challenge. His eyes locked with mine and with a yell, he shoved the bar away from his chest, locked it out, and dropped it onto the brackets. Man, he was quick—that was his strength on the wrestling mat. He caught me totally off guard when he whipped himself off the bench and ducked under the weight bar.
He had his hands locked behind my knees before I knew it. My feet lost contact with the floor a second before my back hit, his shoulder pressing hard against my chest.
“Okay, okay!” I grunted. If he hadn’t knocked some of the wind out of me, I would have laughed. “I’m tapping out!” was all I managed to say.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw a spark of black flash on the computer screen, but when I snapped my head around to look, the screen was just as I had left it.
I know black can’t flash, but I would’ve sworn it had just done that. It was as if a black hole sucked in a bunch of color and spewed it out, like the taste of the colors was too disgusting for it to ingest. Maybe Justin hit me so hard, I was seeing stars. Maybe, but I was pretty certain that wasn’t it, because being knocked flat didn’t usually result in me hearing voices, and I did hear a voice. Distant, but clear.
You need me.
I shoved Justin off and scrambled over to my desk. I switched from screen to screen, looking for… I don’t know what for. I pulled up my auction watch list and checked the time remaining in the auction. Fifteen minutes left. What the hell? I thought there was more time. Hadn’t it just said there were two hours left?
“What’s that?” Justin looked over my shoulder.
“I don’t know. I’ve been watching something. It says ‘Soul for Sale.’ Crazy, huh?”
“Yeah, well,” Justin answered, “you definitely need soul. Have you ever watched yourself dance?”
I could see Justin’s reflection in the window as he danced, looking like a malfunctioning robot, his arms flailing and head twitching in every direction.
It looked like he was enjoying himself too much at my expense, so I reached around and punched him hard on the shoulder.
“There’s not even one bid on it,” I said, turning back to the computer. I nodded towards the screen and crossed my arms over my chest. “Only one dollar. It’s probably a scam. Still…” I leaned closer to the screen. “Listen to this: ‘Power. Seduction. Control.’ Wouldn’t that be sweet?” I leaned back into the chair and started imagining what I’d do with all of that. “I could get Dad off the road, get Dani something cool for her birthday, and have her wrapped around my finger…”
“Instead of the other way around?”
That earned Justin another punch.
Justin leaned in to get a closer look, rubbing his shoulder. “Power Over Your Enemy,” he read aloud.
I grinned. “I might need some help with my dance moves, but you could use help with your enemies on the mat. Maybe you should buy this, whatever it is.”
This time I had the element of surprise. Standing up and spinning around to face him, I stepped forward and snatched Justin’s ankle, lifting his foot high. I tripped him backwards until he landed with a thud on the floor.
“Dude, not cool!” he said, laughing.
We grasped each other’s forearms as I pulled him up.
“You’re lucky I have to go home and finish my English paper. Otherwise, I’d stay here to kick your ass,” Justin said, shoving me back. He grabbed his jacket and put it on. “Did you finish your paper yet?”
“Yeah, this morning.” I crammed my hands into my pockets. “Dani’s coming over. Movie night.”
Zipping his jacket, Justin nodded. “Cool.” He turned to the door. “See ya,” he said over his shoulder. His footsteps faded down the hall and within a few seconds the front door closed.
I looked at the clock. Not much time before Dani would be here.
I sat down at the desk and put my hand over the mouse. The item seemed to be glaring at me, as if I had some nerve to keep it waiting. Great, now it had a personality.
Ten minutes remained in the auction. The picture on the screen wasn’t very clear, but if I squinted really hard, I could almost make out an image flickering in the photo box. Not quite enough, though. It was more like I could feel it, rather than see it, but that made absolutely no sense. I rubbed the frown between my brows. Why did I even care about this? I scanned the description again. Soul for Sale. Power. Seduction. Control. Nothing will be beyond your reach.
That’s why I cared. There was everything I needed to make me happy.
Down at the bottom of the screen, I read the shipping details. No shipping fee. Immediate delivery upon completion of transaction.
Leaning back in my chair, I propped my foot up on the desk, narrowly missing Dani’s picture again. “It would be nice to have a little edge once in a while,” I said to her photo.
It wasn’t that my life was so bad. My room, like the rest of the house, like the neighborhood—hell, like Sandpoint—wasn’t very exciting. But it was a solid world, and it was mine.
But then again, to have control! I could really take care of Dani. I could give her anything she needed. If I had control over everything I wanted, I’d get a scholarship and have enough money to keep Dad from driving all over the country. We could live in a newer house, my old truck would be history…
All of that for only one dollar.
Oh, what the hell. Why not? Even as I clicked on “Bid Now” and even after I entered my debit card number, knowing this was bogus, I couldn’t stop hoping that my bid wo
uld win. Hey, a little desire never hurt anyone.
Time started taking bites out of the five minutes left, and still no one else had placed a bid. Probably for a good reason, I thought, shaking my head, suddenly losing the excitement that I’d had. More than likely, a month from now I’d get some stupid token made in China or a cheap booklet with philosophical crap on the meaning of life or the power of the mind. Maybe a hokey statue made in an obscure Third-World country.
Even so, I couldn’t help but imagine the things I could do with this… soul… or whatever it was. I leaned back in my chair and waited the longest five minutes of my life. Dragging my hand over my face, I let out a sigh. I couldn’t believe I was taking this so seriously. How much of an idiot was I?
The screen glared at me again. Five seconds, four, three, two, one, zero.
Congratulations! You’ve won!
Waves of heat poured through my body and my skin crawled with sharp pinpricks that made the hair on my arms stand up. I wanted to rub the goose bumps off, but my muscles clenched up and I couldn’t move my arms. My breathing sped up and my eyelids felt like lead. I let them close, focusing instead on trying to make the pain in the pit of my stomach go away. I was seriously close to puking.
Crap! This was not the time to be coming down with the flu. Not that any time was good for that, but especially now. With the state wrestling championships coming up, getting sick was not an option.
The second my chin hit my chest, my eyes snapped open. I couldn’t get air into my lungs fast enough as I fought a feeling of panic that pressed against my ribs. I held the air in, taking back control. The tingling stopped, my skin cooled off slowly, and the waves of nausea finally eased up. Relief washed over me, but was it because the waiting was over or because I’d won the bid? I dragged my fingers through my hair again. Maybe a shower would help. I stood and leaned against the desk before moving, feeling suddenly worn-out. Whatever “power” I had just bought had better get me through the next month.
# # #
“Seth?”
The front door slammed shut.
“In the kitchen!” I called to Dani. I shook the skillet around to mix the rice with the sauce. I liked to cook, especially in the winter. Mostly comfort food. Since it took a lot of food to fill me up, I figured I should learn to cook something more than spaghetti and frozen pizzas.
Dani came through the living room and poked her head around the corner. “Mmm! Smells great! Whatcha got cooking there, babe?” She tossed her keys on the counter and stood behind me, wrapping her arms around my waist.
“It’s nothing special,” I said. “Just chicken, rice, and veggies. Oh, and corn muffins.”
She kissed my shoulder. “What you cook is always special, Seth. Don’t sell yourself short.” Her arms tightened for a second and then she stepped around me to lean up against the counter. “You spoil me, ya know?”
I gave her a half-grin and shrugged. “Can’t help myself. You deserve to be spoiled.”
I turned down the temperature on the stove and opened the oven door. “Hand me that, would you?” I asked, pointing to the oven mitt behind her.
Dani grabbed it and tossed it my way. A perfect pitch, but it slid off my hand just as I grabbed the hot baking tin. Yanking my hand back, I waited for the pain. Small, shiny lines ran across the tips of my fingers and thumb, but quickly faded, as if they’d never been there.
“Oh, my God! Are you okay?” Dani pushed herself off the counter and stood close. She grabbed my hand. “Did you get burned?”
We both took a closer look. Nothing.
“Huh,” I said. “Must not have touched it as long as I thought I did.”
“You’re supposed to put your hand in the oven mitt, Seth,” she teased. She took my hand and pressed her lips to my fingers. Then, picking up the mitt from where it had fallen, she slid her hand inside it and took the muffins out of the oven.
I looked at my hand again. There should have been at least some pain. I’d felt the heat coming off the tin when I grabbed it. I stretched my hand and angled it toward the light. I know my skin got burned. I saw the marks. Maybe it wasn’t as bad as I had thought.
I took two plates from the cupboard and handed them to Dani so she could set the table while I started on the salad.
Opening the refrigerator, I poked around. “Lettuce, tomatoes, avocados, and…” I raised my voice so Dani could hear me, “this week, Madame, you have a choice of ranch dressing or blue cheese.” My hip bumped the fridge door shut as I turned to face the only counter space in the small kitchen. There was one problem with the way I cooked—I always managed to use every utensil, seasoning, pot and pan we have, and leave them on the counter, giving me hardly any counter space to work.
I elbowed dirty pans to one side and everything else to the other to make room. Dani’s keys were pushed to the edge of the counter, and teetered for a second before slipping over the edge. Dropping the head of lettuce on to the counter, I reached to catch them. Just as my palm was right over the keys, a single thread of heat shot from my shoulder to my fingertips, just like a pinched nerve, numbing my entire arm.
The keys hovered for a fraction of a second before my fingers wrapped around them.
Yeah. Hovered.
Which was exactly what my heart felt like it was doing.
“Nice catch!” Dani appeared behind me. “You’ve got great reflexes.”
“Yeah,” I said, staring at the keys in my hand. “I guess I do.”
Dani scooped the keys out of my hand and tossed them back on the counter, leaving me to stare at my empty palm.
“Here,” Dani said, getting two knives out of the drawer in front of us and handing one to me. “I’ll help you.”
We made the salad in silence, which was okay, because my mind was spinning with thoughts I couldn’t ignore. My reflexes weren’t that fast, and the keys would have dropped had they not… maybe it was my imagination.
Maybe not.
“What?” I looked at Dani. “What’d you say?”
“I didn’t say anything.” She smiled up at me, then went back to chopping the tomatoes.
That was weird. I could have sworn I’d heard a voice. Again.
With the salad finished, Dani carried the salad bowl to the table. I hung back, though, staring hard at the keys. They sat where Dani had tossed them, nothing out of the ordinary.
But something wasn’t right. Flexing my hand and straightening my fingers, I passed my hand over the top of the keys. Nothing happened. I lowered my hand until it was almost touching the metal.
Still nothing. I’m not exactly sure what I was waiting for. This was nuts. Dani was right. I just had great reflexes.
Compelling this boy has not been easy. Fear follows closely on the heels of his curiosity. I indulge him by letting him perform simple tricks. Soon he will believe. He will see the usefulness of my power. For now, I merely shadow him. Soon I will be his equal.
Then I will be his master.
And finally…
~Maksim
Chapter 3
“Come on, come on,” I twisted the key harder in the ignition, as if that would force the engine to turn over.
My truck didn’t usually have trouble starting when the temperatures dropped down into the 20s like they did last night, but this morning the battery had only enough juice in it to sputter before dying.
“Damn!” I slammed my palm onto the dashboard. I didn’t have time for this. Dani was waiting for me to take her to the animal shelter where we volunteered Saturday mornings, something she had recently talked me into helping her with.
I pressed my forehead against the cold plastic of the steering wheel. God, I was tired. Just how long does it take for three cups of coffee to kick in? I’d never had nightmares before, but last night I’d had a long string of them. Not the zombie or disaster-type nightmare, just the really disturbing, confusing-type. I didn’t remember much more than screams and maniacal laughing and… shadows, I thought they were, moving in
darkness.
Looking up and rubbing my forehead, I stared through the windshield at the quiet street ahead of me. Sandpoint was slow to wake up on winter weekends. On Sundays the town pretty much shut down and Saturdays weren’t much more alive than that. There were hardly any tourists in town now, especially since the ski mountain wasn’t getting a lot of snow this season. Boring. Nothing ever happened here. I couldn’t wait to graduate and go to college, to go somewhere a little more exciting.
I blew out deep breaths and stared as the moisture stuck to the windshield, the edges spreading until I couldn’t see the street in front of my car anymore. What was I doing? I had to get over to Dani’s house.
Reaching down, I pulled on the hood release and then shoved the door open with my shoulder, carefully stepping over the thin ice on the street. I unhooked the latch and the hood opened with a quiet groan, reminding me once more how old my truck was. I knew my way around the wires and belts on this engine better than I wanted to, but I was glad that it was the battery giving me trouble and nothing more than that.
A flash of red from the corner of my eye caught my attention as a brand new, cherry-red truck drove past my driveway. A totally sweet ride. I didn’t stop staring at it until it turned the next corner and drove out of sight.
Depressing. My truck was nothing compared to that—not even in the same league. Crap! I needed to get a new battery, and soon. How much would it be? Seventy-five bucks? I didn’t have that kind of cash and I couldn’t ask my dad for any more money.
There is no need.
“Huh?” I looked over my shoulder, expecting to see my neighbor, but there was no one there. Whatever.
I glared back at the battery. “Stupid thing,” I mumbled. As I jiggled the connectors and checked the bolts to make sure they were tight, pinpricks stabbed at my palm. I tried pulling back, but my hand froze over the battery. Stabbing shots of energy broke against my skin and oozed heat that spread across my entire palm. Blue light arced across the battery and clung to the cables. It was damn near impossible to flex my fingers, but I finally pulled my hand away, and when I closed it into a fist, the heat broke somewhat, but not completely. Gulping down the thudding of my heart and rubbing my hand against my pant leg, I took a couple of slow steps backward to distance myself from the truck. I’d always been under the impression that unless I’m touching metal to exposed terminals on the battery, the chance of getting shocked was fairly small, but okay, next time I’ll use gloves.
Souled Page 2